Diet, Nutrient Status, and Food Insecurity

University of Arkansas, Fayetteville50 enrolled

Overview

Arkansas has one of the highest rates for food insecurity and 27.7% of children in the University of Arkansas area are food insecure. In addition, more than 14% of children ages 2-4 are obese and 20% of children ages 10-17 are obese. In Northwest Arkansas, the area surrounding the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville (Washington County), the food insecurity rate for adults is 17.9% (an estimated 34,730 individuals) and the food insecurity rate for children under 17 years of age is 24.4% (12,150 individuals). In addition, the surrounding counties have similar food insecurity rates (This makes Northwest Arkansas an ideal location to conduct a pilot study focusing on egg supplementation, childhood obesity, and food insecurity (http://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/our-research/map-the-meal-gap).

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

DOUBLE

Enrollment

Conditions

Food Insecurity

Interventions

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 7 YearsMax age: 100 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Food insecurity assessed by use of SNAP benefits or qualifying using the US Food Security Scale). Exclusion Criteria: * No dietary restrictions * Fear of needles * Metabolic disorders * Picky eating * Taking medication

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Micronutrient status in plasma

Micronutrients status will be measured using plasma samples.

Time frame: The change in micronutrient status (e.g. iron, vitamin A, vitamin B12) will be measured from baseline to 16 weeks to determine if the dietary intervention improves baseline micronutrient status.

Body composition

Body composition will be measured using dual X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) .

Time frame: The change in body composition (e.g. ratio of lean to fat mass) will measured from baseline to 16 weeks.

Secondary Outcomes

Height

Height (in centimeters) will be measured using a stadiometer.

Time frame: The change in height will be measured from baseline to 16 weeks.

Weight

Weight (in kilograms) will be measured using a scale.

Time frame: The change in weight will be measured from baseline to 16 weeks.

Waist-to-hip ratio

Waist-to-hip ratio will be measured using the protocol outlined by the World Health Organization.

Time frame: The change in waist-to-hip ratio will be measured from baseline to 16 weeks.